Draery support and elevator



April 28, 1953 E. 1. REULAND DRAPERY SUPPORT AND ELEVA'IIOR 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1 Filed Aug. 24, 1951 INVENTOR 77, 54 F504 ,wvo

AQm/ldd/PZ ATTORNEYS April 28, 1953 E. l. REULAND DRAPERY SUPPORT AND ELEVATOR 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 Filed Aug. 24, 1951 INVENTOR Erma-4 7750A fl vo m, W Um fl Y ATTORNEYS Patented Apr. 28, 1953 UNITED *STATES PATENT OFFME DRAPERY SUPPORT AND ELEVATOR Ethel I. Reuland, Aurora, Ill.

Application August 24, 1951, Serial No. 243,534

3 Claims.

are supported at the proper height relative to the associated window.

It is among the objects of the invention to provide an improved curtain or drapery support which can be readily attached to the trim adjacent a window and will extend from the top of the window trim to a level within convenient reach of a person standing on a floor below the window; which includes a track or guideway structure fixedly attached to the window trim and a curtain or drapery support movable along the guideway from a lower level at which the support is within convenient reach of a person standing on an adjacent floor, and an upper level at which. curtains or drapes are positioned at the proper height relative to the associated window; which includes locking means for releasably holding the support in various intermediate positions relative to the guideway so that the supports at opposite sides of a window can be alternately elevated in a step-by-step manner when a curtain rod extends across the window and is connected at its ends to both supports; which will can; either glass curtains or side drapes or both; which can be adjustably extended from the window trim in a direction away from the associated window to maintain the light-admitting area of the window substantially at its maximum width; which provides a safe, sturdy and rigid support for curtains and drapes; and which is simple and durable in construction, economical to manufacture, easy to install and use, and neat and attractive in appearance.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent from a consideration of the followin description and the appended claims in conjunction with the accompanying' drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view of a window drape support and elevator illustrative of the invention, shown attached to a window trim iragmentarily illustrated in side elevation;

Figure 2 is a front elevational view of the support and elevator illustrated in Figure 1, shown attached to a window trim fragmentarily illustrated, in front elevation;

Figure 3 is a top plan View of the support and elevator illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 with the associated window trim and building wall fragmentarily illustrated;

Figure 4 is a perspective View of the support and elevator and fragmentary portion of the associated window trim;

Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view of the support and elevator taken on the line 5-5 of Figure 1;

Figure 6 is a crosssectional view on the line 8-6 of Figure 2;

Figure 7 is a cross-sectional view of the fragmentary lower portion of the mechanism illustrated in Figure 6, showing the parts in a different relative position from that illustrated in Figure 5; t

Figure 8 is a perspective view of a fragmentary portion of a guide bar constituting an operative component of the device;

Figure 9 is a perspective view of a socket structure constituting an operative component of the device;

Figure 10 is a perspective View of a latch plate constituting an operative component of the device; and

Figure 11 is a perspective View of a curtain rod supporting bracket also constituting an operative component of the device.

With continued reference to the drawings, the drapery support and elevator therein illustrated comprises, in general, a track or guideway structure Ill, a support bracket ll slidably mounted on the guideway structure for movement 1ongitudinally of the latter, a socket structure l2 carried by the bracket structure l l near one end of the latter, a drapery-supporting arm i3 connected at one end to the socket structure it and projecting therefrom substantially perpendicular to the bracket H, a brace i l connected between the arm ill and the bracket ii at a location spaced from the socket structure !2, and latch plates is carried by the bracket and engageable with the guideway structure for releasably locking the bracket at selected positions of longitudinal adjustment relative to the guideway structure.

The guideway structure comprises a pair of elongated, fiat bars iii and ll disposed in spaced apart and substantially parallel relationship and transversely perpendicular to each other, and transverse arms l8 and it disposed at the respectively opposite ends of the bars 55 and ii" and each connected at its ends to the inner or adjacent edges of the bars it and El and extending between these bars. Each of the arms I3 and i9 has a right angular bend intermediate its length, as is clearly illustrated in Figure 4.

The bracket bars I 6 and I! have notches, as indicated at 255 and 2I respectively, spaced apart along one edge thereof, the notches in the bar it being illustrated as along the edge of this bar remote from the arms I8 and I9, and the notches 2! in bar I! bein illustrated as disposed along the edge of this bar adjacent the arms I8 and I9. The bar It has a slot 22 extending longitudinally thereof from a location adjacent the arm I 9 to a location adjacent the arm I8 and the bar I! has a corresponding slot 23. At it ends the bar it is provided with apertured, ofiset cars 24 and 25, and the bar W is provided at its ends with corre sponding apertured cars 26 and 2-1; These. offset ears are adapted to bear against the surface of a window trim strip 28, the ears 26 and 2! on the bar I! bearing against the outside edge surface of" the sidestrip of the window trim with the ear 25 at the top of the trim and the cars 24 and 25 hearing against the front surface of the trim strip with the car 2 3 at the top of the trim. These ears are secured to the window trim by suitable fasteners, such as the wood screws 29, extending through the apertures in the ears and threaded into the associated window trim strip.

The bracket II comprise a pair of elongated, fiat bars 3% and ti disposed in spaced apart and substantially parallel relationship and transversely perpendicular to each other; these bars being superposed respectively on the outer sides of the guideway bars I and I! when the bracket is operatively mounted on the guideway.

An arm 32 extends between the bar 38 and 3| and is connected at its ends to the inner edges of these bars at the normally lower or bottom end of the bracket and has aright-angled bend intermediate its length. The socket structure I2 includesan arm or strip iii, which extends between the inner edges of the bars 30 and 3| at the normally top or upper end of the bracket and has a right-angled bend intermediate its length.- The strip 33 is laterally extended at it ends and provided with rolled formations arranged in opposed pairs, as indicated at' 34' and 35 and 36 and 3?. The rolled formations 34 and 35 constitute one pair and are spaced'apart longitudinally of the bar 30 and provide inwardly opening grooves extending transversely'of the adjacent bracket bar while the formations 36 and 3! are spaced apart longitudinally of the bracket bar 3| and provide inwardly opening grooves extending transversely of this bracket bar I The bracket bars 3!] and 3-! are each provided with a longitudinally extending slot, as indicated at 33 and 39, respectively, and with rectangularly offset formations, as indicated at 45, for the bar 35, and 4 I, for the bar 3!, spaced apart longitudinally of the corresponding bars and providing slideways for the latch'plates I5.

The bar 30 is also provided with an offset handle formation 42 at the normally bottomend of the bracket I i Eaoh'of the latch plates I5, as is particularly illustrated in Figure 10, comprises an intermediate portion 43 of rectangular shape, a tongue portion 34 of rectangular shape projecting perpendicularly from the intermediate portion at one end of the latter, and a handle-providing ear portion 45 of substantially semicircular shape projecting perpendicularly from the intermediate portion at the end of the intermediate portion remote from the tongue 44 and in a direction opposite to the tongue. The intermediate portion 43 is provided with a medially disposed slot 46 extending longitudinally thereof between the tongue portion id and the ear portion 45.

A latch plate is slidably mounted in each of the guideway formations 4i) and M of the bracket bars 33) and 3i, and rivets, as generally indicated at 4'5, extend one through the slot 46 of each latch plate and through the longitudinally extending slots of the corresponding guideway and bracket bars. Each of the rivets i! is headed at both ends, as is particularly illustrated in Figure 7, and washers it and @9 are disposed on each rivet, one at each end thereof, the washer 43 underlying the associated guideway bar and the washer 49 overlyin the corresponding slideway formation of the associated bracket bar, so that the bracket bars are connected to the guideway bars for sliding movement longitudinally of the latter and the latch bar are connected to the bracket bars for sliding movement transversely of the latter.

The tongues 44 of the latch bars I5 are selectively engageable in the notches 25 and 2I in the guideway bars I 6 and i! upon sliding the tongues relatively to the corresponding bracket bars and 3!, to hold the bracket in selected positions of longitudinal adjustment relative to the guideway. I

A stop screw 55 is threaded through a tapped hole in the arm 33 of the socket structure I2 and is engageable with the bottom arm I9 of the guideway to prevent accidental separation of the bracket and the guideway. This screw can be threaded outwardly to pass the arm I9 when it is desired to intentionally separate the'bracket from the guideway.

The drapery support I3 includes an elongated, fiat arm 5! havin at one end a foot formation 52 disposed at right angles to the arm and extending laterally therebeyond at both sides of the arm, this foot formation having its ends received in the groove-providing formations and 3'! of the socket structure to support the arm 5! in a position in which it extends perpendicularly from the hard! of the bracket structurein a direction away from the associated window. This support further includes an arm 53 which is superposed on and overlaps the arm 5I and is provided with a slot 5 extending longitudinally thereof. Rivets 55 and 5 are secured in the arm 5! and extend through the slot 5d in the arm 53 to connect the arm 53 to the arm 5! for longitudinal sliding movement of the former relative to the latter. At its end adjacent the end of arm 5| remote from the bracket structure the arm 53 i provided with a socket formation including rolled-over or beaded portions 5'! and 53 disposed one at each side of the arm 53 and spaced from the corresponding sides of this arm. The formations 57 and 58 provide opposed, inwardly opening grooves which receive a rectangular foot 5%] on a curtain rod-supporting element 50, which element further includes an intermediate portion ISI extending perpendicularly from one edge of the rectangular foot portion 59 and an end portion 62 extending perpendicularly from the end of the intermediate portion 6! remote from the foot portion in the same direction as the foot portion and disposed in spaced and substantially parallel relationship to the foot portion. The end portion 62 is adapted to receive one end of a drapery rod or curtain rod 63 of well known construction.

Where curtain rods having curved ends are used, a different rod-supporting element is provided in which-the endportion 62 is omitted and the-end of the curtain-rod receives the portion (ii of the element.

:A lug structure 65 is secured to the brack t bar Stbetween the socket structure I2 and the barconnecting arm 32-and is provided with an aperture near its outerend. The brace link It is pivotally connected at oneend to the lug struc ture B5by a bolt 66 extending through the aperture in the lug structureand through a corresponding aperture in the brace link and is received at its other end in an offset formation 6'! provided in the arm 53 intermediate the length of the latter. A bolt 68 extends through an aperture in the brace link and through the-slot 54inthe arm 53 to pivotally secure the brace linkat its correspondingendto the arm 53, so that the brace supports the drapery support structure IS in its operative position substantially perpendicular to the bar 3! of the bracket structure H.

The support and elevator assembly is duplicated at the other side of the window and includes a drapery support extending along the wall in a direction awayfrom the window, so that the side drapes are supported one at each side of thewindow with their inner edges adjacent the inner edges of the vertical strips of the window trim. The side drapes supported on thedrapery-supporting elements of the assembly thus cover the sides of the window trim and the support and elevator assemblies, but do not cover any substantial portion of the window area, leaving the major portion of this area open for the admission of light therethrough.

When it is desired to mount a glass curtain to coverthe window area between the side drapes, a curtain rod-supporting element 79, as par ticularly illustrated in Figure 11, is mounted on the bracket structure. a rectangular foot portion H, the ends of which are received inthe groove-providing formations 34 and 35 of the socket structure [2, and an arm portion '52 extending perpendicularly from the foot portion inadircction away from the bar as of the bracket structure and adapted to receive an end of a curtain rod having curved end portions.

If desired, screws 13 and M are threaded through tapped holes in the foot portions 58 and II, respectively, of the supporting elements iii; 5

and "It to secure the supporting elements to the socket structure when the screws are threaded inwardly of the corresponding foot portions.

In order to install the device, the guideway structure iii is first mounted on the window trim by the screws 29 in the manner indicated above. The bracket structure it is then slid onto the guideway structure by sliding the washers-i8 on the rivets l'l through the open bottom ends of the slots 22 and 23 in the guideway bars 2 and 2%. After the intermediate portion or arm 33 of the socket structure I2 has been brought above the bottom arm iii of the guideway structure, the stop screw 56 is threaded inwardly to preclude separation of the guideway and bracket structures.

In order to mount a drape on the support and elevator assembly, with the bracket structure it held at a height within convenient reach of a person standing on the floor below the assembly, by engaging the tongue of at least one of the latch plates id in a selected notch in one of the bars of the guideway structure, the drape is mounted on the drape or curtain rod 63 supported by the support structure 13 and the supported This element is has end of. the drape, is :arranged ;as 5 desired. The stop screw 50 is threaded outwardly togclear the top leg [8, the handle 42 is: then. grasped, by one hand ofthe person mounting the drape, and the latch plate is disengagedfrom the selected notch in the guideway bar and the bracket is raised to its top position relative to the guideway structure. At least one of the latch plates is then moved to re-engage its tongue in the ad- ,iacent notch of the guideway structure to hold the bracket in its uppermost position relative to the associated guideway structure.

When a glass curtain is used so that, the rod for this curtain extends between the two brackets mounted at theopposite sides of a window,; one of the brackets is raised a limited amount and latched in position and the other bracket is then raised to a position somewhat above :the first-moved bracket and latched in position. The firstunoved bracket is then again raised a limited amount, the two brackets being successively raised in a step-by-step manner so that the rod supporting the glasscurtain does not become disengaged from either of the bracket structures.

The invention may be embodied in other'specific forms without departing from, the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. The present embodiment is, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description, and all-changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalencyof the claims are, therefore, intended to be embraced therein.

What is claimed is:

1. A drapery support and elevator assembly comprising a guideway, structure including, elongated bars disposed in spaced apart and subvstantially parallel relationship and transversely extending longitudinally thereof from one end to a location adiacentthe other end and having spaced apart notches in one edge and offset apertured ears disposed one at each end thereof for receiving fasteners to secure said guideway-structure to a window trim strip, said guideway structure being mountable on a window trim strip with one end at the stop of the window trim and said bars depending vertically from the top of the window trim one along the face and one along the outside edge of the associated vertical trim strip, a support bracket slidably mounted on said guideway structure and including elongated bars superposed one on each of said guideway structure bars and arms extending between said bracket bars adjacent the ends thereof and each having a right-angular bend intermediate its length, each of said bracket bars having a slot extending longitudinally thereof and slideway formations spaced apart longitudinally thereof and at least one of said bracket bars having an oifset handle formation at one end thereof, latch plates slidably disposed one in each of said guideway formations and each having a tongue on one end selectively engageable in the notches in the adjacent guideway bar, a handle-providing car on its other end and a slot extending between the tongue and the ear, fasteners extending one through each latch plate and through the corresponding bracket and guideway bars for connecting said latch plates to said bracket bars for mesa-710 sliding movement transversely of the' latter and saidbracket 'bars'to said guideway bars for sliding movement of said fbracket longitudinally of said guideway structure, and a drapery-supporting' arm detachably connected at one end to said bracket and projecting outwardly thereof substantially perpendicular thereto.

2.'A drapery support and elevator assembly comprising a guideway structure including elongated bars disposed in spaced apart and substantially parallel relationship and transversely perpendicular to'eachother and armsextending be tween said bars adjacent the ends thereof and each having a right-angled bend intermediate its length, each of said bars having a slot extendin'g longitudinallythereof from one end to a location adjacent "the other end and having spaced apart notchesin oneedge and offset apertured ears'disposedone at each end thereof for receiving fasteners to secure said guideway structure to a window trim strip, said guideway struc ture being mountable on a window trim strip with one end at the top of the window trim and said bars depending vertically from the top of the window trim one along the face andone along the outside edge of the associated vertical trim strip, a support bracket slidably mounted on said guideway structure and including elongated bars superposed one on each of said guideway structure bars and arms extending between said bracket bars adjacent the ends thereof and each having a right-angular bend intermediate its length, each of said bracket bars having a slot extending longitudinallythereof and slideway formations spaced apart longitudinally thereof and at least one of said bracket bars having an ofiset handleformation at one end thereof, latch plates slidably disposed one in each of said guideway formations and each having a tongue on one end selectively engageable in the notches in the adjacent guideway bar, a handle-providing ear on its other end and a slot extending between the tongue and the ear, fasteners extending one through each latch plate and through the corresponding bracket and guideway bars for connecting said latch plates to said bracket bars for sliding movement transversely of the latter and said bracket bars to said guideway bars for sliding movement of said bracket longitudinally of said guideway structure, a socket structure mounted on said bracket near the end thereof remote from said handle, a first arm engaged at one end in said socket structure and extending perpendicularly from said bracket, a second arm superposed on said first arm in overlapping relationship thereto, means interconnecting said arm for relative longitudinal sliding movement, a lug extending from said bracket at a location spaced from said first arm, a brace connected between 8 said lug and said secondarm for supporting said first and second arms substantially perpendicular to said bracket, a socket structure on the end of said second arm remote from said bracket, and a curtain rod-engaging element mounted at one end in the last-mentioned socket structure. 1 7

3. A drapery support and elevator assembly comprising an elongated guideway structure adaptedlto bemounted on a window trim with one end at the top of the trim andwith said guideway structure depending from, the top of the trim. alongthe outer vertical edge thereof, an elongated bracket structure superposed on said guideway structure in overlapping relationship thereto, means J connecting said bracket structure to said guideway structure for longitudinal sliding movement of the former relativeto the latter, said bracket structure being vertically movable when said guideway structure is operatively mounted on a window trim, means carried by one of said structures and engageable with the other at selected locations therealong to releasably lock said structures in selected positions of longitudinal adjustment relative to each other, and a curtain rod-supporting assembly extending perpendicularly from said bracket structure at the normally upper end of the latter, said guideway structure and said bracket structure both including two longitudinally extending portions disposed at right angles to each other and in spaced apart and substantially parallel relationship and adapted to respectively overlie the front face and the outside edge of an associated Window trim strip, and said curtain rod-sup porting assembly including a first socket mounted on said bracket structure at the normally upper end of the portion of the latter adapted to overlie the outside edge of an associated window trim'strip, an adjustable length arm assembly engaged at one end'in said first socket and extending perpendicularly from the associated portion of said bracket structure, a second socket on the other end of said arm assembly, a curtain rod-engaging element engaged at one end in said second socket, and a brace connected between said arm assembly at a location intermediate the length of the latter and said associated bracket portion at a location spaced from said first socket.

ETHEL I. REULAND.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 517,952 Lambert Apr. 10, 1894 784,155 Haas Mar. 7, 1905 800,429 Davis Sept. 26, 1905 1,639,668 Robinson Aug. 23, 1927 

